Did You Know That…

 

…Middle East Port update of 6th of May April is available: Middle East port update 06.05.2026  

 

US plan to move vessels and renewed Iran threats

• Ships told to prepare for exit via Oman territorial waters and US promises overwatch support via a new ‘enhanced security area’

• Omani coastguard will provide traffic control, but US remains quiet on what support is being given

• Iran warns it will ‘respond harshly’ to any US move and says safe passage of vessels needs to be coordinated with IRGC

• Reports of an Adnoc tanker struck by unknown projectiles near Fujairah.

…US announces ‘Project Freedom’ without industry coordination, leaving shipping companies scrambling for details on how American forces plan to escort vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz.

Shipping unconvinced by US ‘Project Freedom’ as Hormuz remains closed

• Commercial traffic remains at a standstill, with no traceable transits on Tuesday and owners still unsure whether the US would intervene if Iran targeted ships

• US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s claims of ‘hundreds’ of ships preparing to move and a protective military ‘dome’, is now in place

• Operators with vessels trapped inside the Middle East Gulf insist nothing has changed, describing a disconnect between US statements and the on‑the‑ground security reality.

Shipowners and insurers report the US‑led ‘Project Freedom’ has not provided sufficient clarity or credible protection to justify resuming transits through the Strait of Hormuz.

…Project Freedom paused as shipping industry left guessing.

• Trump pauses Project Freedom one day after launch, citing progress in Iran talks

• Shipowners unsurprised by reversal, with one calling it ‘another TACO’

• Strait of Hormuz remains largely empty as passage rights become Tehran’s bargaining chip

• All eyes on whether Trump’s May 14-15 summit with Xi yields any consensus on Iran.

Trump pauses Project Freedom one day after launch, leaving Hormuz’s reopening in limbo as passage rights become Tehran’s bargaining chip.

…Evergreen Expands WCSA Network with New PNC Service Loop. Taiwan-based container carrier Evergreen Marine Corporation has expanded its West Coast South America (WCSA) network with the launch of a new PNC (Pacific North Coast) service loop, aimed at strengthening connectivity across key Latin American trade lanes.

…US container rates add to gains as European market pulls back.

• SCFI Shanghai-US west coast index is at $2,722 per feu, highest since June 2025; Shanghai-US east coast index at $3,691 per feu, highest since July 2025

• WCI Rotterdam-New York index at $2,327 per feu, up 55% from recent low in March

• WCI Shanghai-Rotterdam index at $2,216 per feu, down 14% from high in March; Shanghai-Genoa index at $3,039 per feu, down 15% from high in April.

The world is awash in geopolitical turmoil. You wouldn’t know it looking at container freight indexes, which continue to rise and fall within normal historical ranges.

…Iran pushes ahead with Hormuz toll ‘authority’ amid reports of US-Iran deal

• Iran moves to normalise control over Strait of Hormuz shipping amid reports of a US-Iran deal to reopen the waterway

• Reported deal would pause Iran’s nuclear enrichment in exchange for sanctions relief and the lifting of Hormuz transit restrictions, but details are yet to be negotiated

• China has urged a swift reopening of the strait, calling for all parties to restore safe passage.

Iran has created a new Persian Gulf Strait Authority to approve ship transits and collect tolls in the Strait of Hormuz, just as reports are emerging that the US and Iran are negotiating a detailed agreement to open the strait.

…Our friend Steven Yuan from FS International in China shared the following update on China to Europe trade: In the first half of Week 19, a significant number of blank sailings led to a weekly capacity drop to as low as 241,000 TEU, which was the primary driver behind the high load factors observed across most shipping lines during that period. In the latter half of the month, the average weekly capacity rebounded to approximately 288,000 TEU. Following the holiday, certain shipping lines began implementing cargo rollovers, notably on the PA Alliance's FE4 service. As cargo volumes gradually enter the peak-season window, freight rates are expected to maintain an upward trend from May through July. At present, only Maersk and MSC have published their rate guidance for late May. While these rates have not yet reached the previously announced level of USD 3,500 per 40HQ, they remain higher than those seen in early May.

 

…Amazon plans an investment program of over €15 billion in France, to be implemented over a period of three years (2026–2028). This represents the company’s largest investment in France. The measures include the construction of new logistics centers, the expansion of existing infrastructures, as well as investments in cloud and AI technologies. As part of this program, more than 7,000 new jobs in permanent employment contracts are to be created.

 

…Libya’s growing fuel-smuggling empire starts to shift from tankers to containers.

• UN report finds smugglers diverting subsidised fuel with near‑total impunity as tankers and containers move uninspected through key ports

• Tanker operations shifting into innovative containerised trades with operators often unaware they are complicit

• Shell companies, AIS dark activity and offshore transfers used to disguise Libyan origins before reaching buyers across Europe, Africa and beyond.

A UN investigation has uncovered a rapidly expanding Libyan fuel‑smuggling empire, shifting from tankers into containerised flexi‑tanks that are misdeclared as paint solvent or metal scrap.

…Soon, not only flights but also shipping routes will be canceled. A shortage of marine fuel is looming in Asia, particularly in South Korea and Japan. As early as the end of this month, ships there may be forced to remain docked.
Companies and consumers here will also soon face more expensive Asian goods and longer delivery times.

It is only a matter of weeks before little to no oil will be available in some ports for ships wanting to sail from Asia to destinations such as Europe. Want mobile phones from South Korea? Or cars from Japan? Then stock up now, because in a few weeks products from those countries are likely to become significantly more expensive. This is all due to a shortage of fuel oil, the fuel used by seagoing vessels.

For now, the shortages are still manageable, in the sense that they have only led to higher fuel oil prices as a result of the war in Iran. But it is only a matter of weeks before some ports will have little to no oil available for ships planning to sail from Asia to destinations such as Europe. In Rotterdam, the world’s second-largest bunkering port, supplies are still reasonably stable, but that is not the case in Asia. In Singapore, the world’s largest bunkering port, it is already becoming clear that the strain is starting to show: whereas ships there normally bunker around 4.7 million tons of oil per month, that volume fell by at least 300,000 tons in April.  It is no coincidence that Asia in particular is feeling the impact. Of all the continents, it is by far the most dependent on oil from the Middle East. And now that the Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed, the effects are being felt there first and most severely.

…Following eight years of negotiations, Australia and the European Union (EU) have finalised negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

 

…Butterflies can remember things they learned as caterpillars.

 

Wishing you all a very good rest of the week !

 

…This DYKT news bulletin will be published on the website as well, go to www.eaanetwork.com.